Seat Belt

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT SEAT BELT - PAGE 4

QUAKERTOWN For a week or so, Quakertown police officers have been watching drivers, checking for seat belt use. This week, they'll enforce the law requiring drivers to buckle up. Under a $5,000 grant from the state Department of Transportation, Quakertown police will put extra patrols on major roadways as part of the "Buckle Up Pennsylvania" campaign. "As we enforce traffic violation we will specifically look at seat belt use," said Police Chief Jim McFadden. Because seat belt use is a secondary offense, police cannot pull over drivers without another reason, such as speeding.

The issue of whether a Monroe County man should face a vehicular homicide charge for the death of his 4-year-old daughter, who fell out of his car while not wearing a seat belt, might be hinged on this seemingly minor motor code question: Is it a crime to make a U-turn on a posted highway if a worker for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation was not authorized to erect the traffic sign? The answer may determine whether Angelo Anthony Sergi, 38, will stand trial for the death of his daughter, Theresa, who tumbled out of his car Dec. 8 and was struck by a pickup truck.

A Monroe County man yesterday was charged in the death of his 4-year-old daughter who fell out of his car while not wearing a seat belt. Angelo Anthony Sergi, 38, of Tobyhanna was arraigned yesterday morning by District Justice Henry McCool of Bartonsville. Sergi was charged with homicide by motor vehicle, involuntary manslaughter, endangering the welfare of a child, recklessly endangering another person and violating several motor vehicle codes, including the seat belt law. Monroe County District Attorney E. David Christine said Sergi faces a maximum of five years in jail.

The Montgomery County commissioners appointed Pottstown Memorial Medical Center yesterday to develop and mount a $75,000 campaign promoting seat-belt use. "They will develop a program, then go out to the public and make presentations around the county," assistant county solicitor Larry Folmor said. The state is expected to confirm the appointment within 90 days, said Juanita Elliott, director of public relations at the medical center. The federal Highway Administration will fund the 18-month campaign.

A House-Senate conference committee yesterday sat down and buckled up a compromise mandatory seat belt proposal. The measure, which is expected to be voted upon today in both chambers, would impose a $15 fine on drivers or front-seat passengers convicted of not using seat belts while riding. Police would not, however, be given primary enforcement power to cite anyone they see riding without their seat belt buckled. They could only issue a citation after arresting a driver for some other violation of the state Motor Vehicle Code.

Monroe County's new district attorney, Jim Gregor, has decided not to prosecute a Tobyhanna man for the death of his 4-year-old daughter, who fell out of his car while not wearing a seat belt. On Dec. 8, 1990, Angelo A. Sergi was driving on Route 611 in Pocono Township when he made an illegal U-turn, police said. His daughter, Theresa, was leaning against a faulty passenger door and fell out of the car. Moments later, Theresa was fatally struck by a pickup truck along the dark highway.

"Think how it would feel without a seat belt on," South Whitehall Patrolman Richard Altemos told a visitor to the township's police open house after she received a jolt from "The Convincer." Designed to convince people of the importance of wearing seat belts, "The Convincer" is a gravity-fed sled which takes you down a short hill at seven miles per hour and abruptly stops, simulating a head-on collision. Of course, you are strapped into the ride with a seat belt and shoulder harness, saving you from what would certainly be a painful experience otherwise.

The Carbon County commissioners decided yesterday to promote two public education campaigns designed to prevent alcohol use by county youth and to increase seat-belt use throughout the county. The commissioners proclaimed October as Be Smart! Don't Start! - Just Say No! month, in an attempt to help teach youngsters and their parents of the problems with alcohol use at a young age. The commissioners presented Nancy Zanchuk, drug and alcohol specialist for the Carbon-Monroe-Pike Drug and Alcohol Commission, the proclamation and wished her well with the program.

The majority of Pennsylvanians are opposed to mandatory use of seat belts in automobiles, according to a recent survey by State Rep. Paul I. Clymer, R- 145th District. Clymer said 55 percent of 636 respondents to the poll said they opposed adoption of a mandatory seat belt law for both motorists and passengers in the state. But it's an issue that will have to be addressed both in Pennsylvania and other states, he said. The federal government has announced that air bags and other safety devices will become standard on all automobiles in 1987 unless states representing two-thirds of the nation's population enact seat belt laws, Clymer explained.

A Monroe County man charged with causing his 4-year-old daughter's death by not securing her with a seat belt has asked Monroe County Court to throw out the charges. Last week, District Justice Henry McCool of Bartonsville bound to court 38-year-old Angelo Sergi on charges of homicide by motor vehicle, involuntary manslaughter and recklessly endangering another person. On Dec. 8, Sergi was driving south on Route 611 with his daughter, Theresa, when he allegedly made a U-turn. Theresa, who reportedly was not fastened by a seat belt and was leaning against a faulty door, tumbled out of Sergi's car and was fatally struck by a pickup truck.